The middle of the empty, blazing hot Arizona desert might not seem the most attractive location to build a new town.

But when that town is specifically designed as a bombing target by the U.S. Air Force, then the advantages of such an isolated spot soon become apparent.

It is better known by its nickname 'Yodaville', after the call sign of Major Floyd Usry, the military commander who came up with the extraordinary idea of constructing the installation.

Most bombed city in the world: The Urban Target Complex - or R-2013-West - was built in 1999 about five miles north of the U.S. / Mexican border in southern Arizona

Yodaville is used by the U.S. Air Force as a bombing site and has zero inhabitants. The nearest town is 20miles away

The Urban Target Complex - or R-2013-West - was built in 1999 about five miles north of the U.S. and Mexican border in southern Arizona specifically for the air force to practice bomb, rocket and missile targeting.

Incredible pictures show the deserted town which was built to be bombed has 178 buildings made from stacked shipping containers of various sizes which are up to four stories tall.

Yodaville has, of course, zero inhabitants, instead relying on simulated lifeforms with the nearest town a safe distance of 20 miles away.

It is the first urban close air support range in the U.S. military, where all types of aircraft and their crews can practice with rockets, guns, and laser guided training rounds.

The complex also features vehicle targets, ranging from civilian cars to armoured tanks within its, approximately, half-a-kilometer length boundary.

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One Army instructor told Air & Space Magazine in 2009 that the terrain is similar to much of the Middle-East and central Asia and so provides a realistic target environment for pilots to improve their precision close air support skills.

He said: 'The urban layout is actually very similar to the terrain in many villages in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“The Close Air Support training we do here at Yodaville is some of the most realistic any pilot or ground controller will get.'

Training ground: A team of students from the FBI's Large Vehicle Post-Blast Investigation Course investigates the aftermath of an aerial assault

Secluded: Yodaville lies in southern Arizona about five miles north of the U.S. / Mexican border. The nearest town is 20miles to the east

Air & Space Magazine reporter Ed Darack revealed how Yodaville was so pummelled by artillery fire during a 'simulated' attack that it 'looked like it was barely able to keep standing'.

He wrote: 'The artillery and mortars started firing, troops advanced toward the target complex, and aircraft of all types - carefully controlled by students on the mountain top - mounted one attack run after another.

'At one point so much smoke and dust filled the air above the "enemy" that nothing could be seen of the target - just one of the real-world problems the students had to learn to cope with that day.'

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Target 'Yodaville': The town in the middle of Arizona desert built by the U.S. Air Force to practice its bombing raids